During the summer we think of flowers like petunias as those fragrant, spilling or tumbling flowers cascading over the rims of baskets and mixed containers. That same show of incredible color coupled with tantalizing fragrance can now be achieved during the cool season with pansies like the Cool Wave series in some zones.
I'll be honest when they first came out under the name of Plentifall which I liked, I was a little dismayed by the change to Cool Wave. This may be because I'm a guy and change is not always comfortable. Of course in my mind, the real reason was WAVES were petunias doggone it. Now you get the drift I am really an old geezer past middle age and set in my ways.
Ok, I surrender, especially after watching them bloom the past couple of years. I love the 'Waves' of summer and I love the 'Waves' of winter. There are around a dozen colors and three mixes in the Cool Wave series.
I am partial to using them in containers and baskets where you get to enjoy that trailing habit. We just haven't had trailing pansies and violas long enough for them to become old hat. To me, they are still new and unique. This also means I haven't come close to exploring all of the cool season combinations.
I know as I write this a Polar Vortex is taking aim at much of the country. But no matter where you live you have a pansy season. Now is the time for those in zones 7 and warmer. So far in my area, we have toasted the tropicals and the pansies just seem to be kicking into high gear.
With pansies your soil preparation is crucial. You want the water to drain freely. This means the obvious, you have holes in your containers and your soil mix is light and fluffy which will simply lead to quick root expansion.
I like the potting mixes that contain controlled released granules but now you will want to push these cool season troopers during the growing season which for us is winter. Yes like the song says 'Baby It's Cold Outside', it is but the pansies are heavy hungry feeders. So for this continual feeding, mix up the old blue jug stuff of a diluted fertilizer and feed every couple of weeks. You'll be surprised at the reward of dazzling blooms.
The Cool Wave pansies will give you a look in containers you are not accustomed to in cool weather, so let your imagination run wild when choosing partners. Consider foliage plants like kale, cabbage, cardoon Swiss chard and my favorite Lemon Ball or Angelina sedum. For taller, spiky flowers, think about Sonnet snapdragons, Citrona Erysimum or dianthus like Dash or Amazon.
They may be called spreading, trailing and even cascading, but whatever the name, you will want some for baskets, mixed containers, and window boxes where they will open the door to a new dimension in cool season gardening. When I say dimension I am talking about the vertical element. Though you probably never thought about pansies cascading over a wall, it is now possible.
